Chapter 73

Wang Bo's parents did not blame him and Lu Lu for coming home so late; they thought the two had been studying at school for a while before returning. They were still unaware that Lu Lu had been kidnapped. To avoid worrying his parents, Wang Bo decided not to tell them for the time being.

After arriving home, he chatted with his parents in the living room. They were sitting together, enjoying fruit, when the doorbell suddenly rang, and it rang quite urgently.

Wang Bo's father, puzzled, went to the door and looked through the peephole, saying, "Hmm, son, why is your teacher here so late?" As he spoke, he opened the door and welcomed her, "Teacher Xu! Welcome! Please come in!"

When Wang Bo's mother heard that his homeroom teacher had come, she hurried out to greet her, saying, "Teacher, please come in! The house is a mess, no need to change shoes, just come in!"

This was unexpected for Xu Wushuang. She had originally come to stop the students from indulging in forbidden fruit, but she found that Wang Bo's parents were both at home, which suggested that the situation was not as she had imagined.

She quickly reacted and chuckled, "Mr. and Mrs. Wang, you're both here. Hello, I'm here for a home visit!"

After saying this with a bold and shameless tone, she stepped into the house. She turned her head and saw Wang Bo and Lu Lu sitting in the living room, looking at her with surprise.

Wang Bo was quite good at pretending in front of his parents and quickly reacted, "Teacher Xu, hello. Why are you here? It's so late and you've come all this way. I'm really sorry!"

Lu Lu also quickly reacted, "Uh, hello, Teacher Xu."

Xu Wushuang nodded slightly and then sat down, chatting with Wang Bo's parents. A few minutes later, she finally understood the whole story. It turned out that Lu Lu was a relative of the Wang family and had recently moved in with them. Xu Wushuang took the opportunity to praise Wang Bo, saying he had been performing well recently, being very active in school and making rapid progress in his studies. Wang Bo kept being modest, attributing all the credit to Teacher Xu's excellent guidance.

Xu Wushuang looked at him with a smile, thinking to herself, "This boy is quite well-behaved at home, only saying comforting words, but why does he always pick hurtful words when we're alone?"

She then praised Lu Lu, calling her an uncommonly good child who never caused any trouble.

Teacher Xu's home visit greatly pleased Wang Bo's parents, who thanked her repeatedly for her concern and care for the children. After chatting for a while, Xu Wushuang suddenly said with a smile, "Wang Bo, I have something to say to you. Can we go to your room and talk privately?"

Wang Bo's heart skipped a beat. He thought that refusing would make him seem guilty, so he said, "Sure, Teacher, this way."

The two entered the room and closed the door. Wang Bo then asked calmly, "What brings you here?"

Xu Wushuang did not answer his question but walked straight to the wardrobe and opened it. Seeing the clothes hanging inside, she exclaimed, "You actually sleep together?!"

Wang Bo sighed in relief, "I sleep on the floor. Don't make such a big deal out of it. Were you following me just now?"

He had been suspicious while sitting outside and, seeing the unease on her face when he asked, he was sure his guess was correct.

"I didn't know you two were relatives. When you brought a girl home, I naturally had to follow and check," she mumbled.

"Alright," Wang Bo sighed, "Now that you've seen and asked, can you go back?"

"Even if you are relatives, you shouldn't share a room," Xu Wushuang insisted. "What do your parents think? You're not kids anymore!"

"Because we're not kids anymore, we can distinguish right from wrong," Wang Bo said calmly. "Teacher Xu, if you don't trust others, do you not trust me? Do you think I would do something inappropriate to my own sister?" His meaning was clear: I didn't fall for you even when you tried to seduce me twice, so how could I lose control with a young girl?

Xu Wushuang blushed, hearing the underlying message, and said sourly, "She's your distant cousin, yet you call her 'sister' so affectionately..."

Wang Bo didn't want to argue with her, "Do you have anything else? If not, go back. I've already told you, I don't want to have anything more to do with you in the future."

This made Xu Wushuang's expression stiffen. She bit her lip and said, "Are you really serious? Not just saying it in anger?"

He was annoyed by her gaze and nodded carelessly without speaking. Xu Wushuang also nodded slowly, "Alright, if that's the case, you're just my student, and I'm just your teacher. I hope you remember what you said today. No matter what happens, don't come to me again."

As she prepared to leave, she was pulled back by Wang Bo, "What do you mean? Are you going to get drunk again and sleep with some random man?"

Xu Wushuang forcefully shook off his hand, "What's it to you? If I want to be with a man, it's my choice. I have my own needs."

He said painfully, "Can't you have a little self-respect?"

"Ha? Self-respect?" Xu Wushuang looked into his eyes, "I want to have self-respect and treat a relationship seriously, but do you allow it? You just pull me out of one pit and push me into a deeper one, spitting on me as you do so!"

Wang Bo was shocked. He hadn't realized how important he was to her. If he had known that he was her emotional support, he wouldn't have said those hurtful words without thinking.

"I'm sorry..." he murmured, then said, "I just don't want to continue causing you trouble, because I'm your student, and liking you is a mistake."

"Since you know it's a mistake, why not let it continue to be a mistake?" Xu Wushuang smiled bitterly, "Forget it, it's too late anyway. Wang Bo, I gave you a chance, but you were still so cold. I don't want to say more. In the future, we'll just go our separate ways."

Wang Bo's fists were clenched so tightly that his nails almost dug into his flesh. He could sense from Xu Wushuang's attitude that she had once had feelings for him, but he had hurt her, leaving her with only despair, much like the feeling her ex-husband had given her.

"I actually..." he tried to speak, but didn't know what to say. Xu Wushuang, seeing his helplessness, smiled coldly, "Save it, I'm leaving. Thanks for your care during this time, but I'll try to forget."

With that, she opened the door and walked out, smiling and saying goodbye to Wang Bo's parents and Lu Lu, then left the Wang family home. Lu Lu walked into the room and saw Wang Bo standing dazed at the door. She felt a pang of worry, remembering how Wang Bo had cried on the street, and how Teacher Xu's eyes seemed to have been crying as well...

Thinking about the story Wang Bo had told her, she suddenly understood many things: something unexpected must have happened between Teacher Xu and Wang Bo, something that made both of them cry uncontrollably.

She steadied herself, her face showing some struggle, but finally said, "Brother, Teacher is leaving alone, so late. Aren't you going to see her off?"

Lu Lu's considerate reminder made Wang Bo suddenly realize. He said, "I'll go see Teacher Xu off," and rushed out of the house.

Before he left the neighborhood, he saw a fragile figure hunched over, crying silently by the roadside. Xu Wushuang hadn't walked far before her tears overflowed again.

The pain Wang Bo had caused her was even deeper than what her ex-husband had inflicted, making her feel as if life was not worth living. Xu Wushuang felt that after this pain, she had fallen deeply in love with this man, but at the same time, she hated him to the core.

"I actually don't want to leave you!" Wang Bo finished the sentence he had left unfinished.

Xu Wushuang's trembling shoulders paused, then she wiped her tears and stood up as if nothing had happened, her voice trembling, "Why did you come out?"

He walked over and hugged her from behind, kissing her ear, making her shudder. She felt her ears flush and awkwardly broke free, scolding him, "What are you doing? You haven't even said what you wanted to say, don't touch me. I warn you, if you come any closer, I'll kick you."

She kept touching her ear, her face still tear-streaked, but her expression was a mix of embarrassment and anger, yet not really angry. Wang Bo smiled faintly, looking at her with affection. Sometimes, words are not necessary; a single look can convey everything.

She avoided his gaze, feeling her heart race, thinking, "Oh no, is he my nemesis reincarnated? How could he so easily capture me?"

A quarrel, a conflict, and a decisive breakup brought the two hearts closer than ever before. They saw each other's hearts and understood their own feelings. Sometimes, only when you lose something do you realize how much you cherish it. This is why lovers often argue, because only then do they realize how much pain they feel when they are about to lose each other, and thus value their relationship even more.

Wang Bo approached her, making her turn her head to avoid looking at him. He chuckled and grabbed her hand that was touching her ear, kissing her pale fingers and teasingly running his tongue over them.

She pulled her hand back as if electrocuted, looking around nervously and scolding him, "What are you doing? You don't say anything, just touch me. If you do that again, I'll really kick you!"

Wang Bo saw her continuously wiping her other hand, her face flushed even more, and stopped teasing her, "It's too late, it's not safe for you to go home alone. I'll see you off."

She looked at him with a hint of suspicion, keeping her distance, and said, "You can see me off, but no more touching, got it... You're still laughing! Do you want to get kicked?"

Wang Bo stopped laughing and walked with her for a while, then suddenly said, "So you're this sensitive... Ha... Ouch!" He finally got kicked, on his calf.

"I'm the hope of the school team. If you hurt me, Coach Zhang will come after you," he muttered, rubbing his leg, which really hurt. This woman's kick was quite strong, and the slap she gave him on the street had made his eyes see stars.

Xu Wushuang said fiercely, "Breaking your calf is still mild. If you keep being disrespectful, I'll break your third leg!"